If the goal is to envision a new approach to the annual enrollment experience, to what extent - if any - should the team consider other aspects of the year-round benefits administration and communications process? In many chases, this senior leadership group will go so far as to develop a straw-man vision to kick things off, with the understanding that it will be worked over as part of the Phase 0 process. ​

• Composition of the Phase 0 team.
  Phase 0 projects provide excellent development opportunities for future leaders. So while the primary purpose of Phase 0 is to envision a future that aligns with the organization's strategic needs, secondarily it enables team members to take a break from daily tasks to engage in strategic thinking while collaborating with peers in a new way. Phase 0 also provides an opportunity to expand the team beyond traditional departments and leverage expertise and insights from other areas of HR or the broader business.

• Process specifics, including timing.
  A lot of details go into planning a productive Phase 0 efforts. When will we kick-off... and when do we need to wrap up? How much time to the effort will team members be allowed to dedicate to it? Where will Phase 0 workshops be held: on-site, near-site, or virtually (the least optimal option? And importantly how will Phase 0's outcomes be reported?

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Next, we engage the team. As part of the alignment discussion (described above), we've determined how team members will be informed of the Phase 0 initiative, and their opportunity to participate.

 

It's critically important that all team members understand the importance of the effort, and that they know their managers are aware of, and will accommodate, their active participation.

 

This stage may also include a formal team onboarding process, one that leverages a proprietary tool to which we have access, AgileBrain. The AgileBrain tool is a fast, fun icebreaker that can be employed in advance of or at the start of the Phase 0 "Imagine" Workshop. It provides each team members insight into their own emotional needs and motivations, which in turn helps them begin to "empathize" with those who will ultimately be impacted by future changes.

 

Another benefit of incorporating AgileBrain into the process is that it helps to ensure a healthy team environment. emHrge's consulting team reviews de-identified AgileBrain results at the individual level as well as an aggregated report, providing valuable insights into likely team dynamics. 

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Now it's time for the fun to begin... it's time to imagine! 

 

Imagining the future can take many forms. The one we most frequently employ is a live-and-in-person (!) workshop...

 

... a workshop conducted either over one day, with a free-form lunch discussion, or in two half-day sessions conducted back-to-back. As experienced workshop facilitators we have a number of tricks up our sleeve to ensure the workshop pace and feel is appropriately balanced between energetic and fun and productive and thoughtful. We kick off the session by:

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• Reviewing the purpose of Phase 0 and that day's workshop

• Establishing ground rules for the day

• Engaging in an ice-breaking exercise (AgileBrain, as described previously, or other)

• Introducing (if applicable) the straw-man vision developed by senior leadership.

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Then, through a handful of exercises and group discussion, the team "works over" the vision by:

• Defining what it means generally

• Discussing the implications of the vision

• Assessing the current state and comparing it with the desired future state

• Brainstorming ideas - no matter how "out there" - as to how the future state might look in practice

• Considering high-level obstacles to bringing the vision to life, including organizational readiness

... and more.

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We wrap up the day with a participant-led recap and a review of next steps.

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We do have other methods for envisioning (and testing the vision of) the future. But those are emHrge secrets, which we're willing to share in a conversation.

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It's time to take a step back: It's time to reflect and potentially engage other stakeholders.

While your team members go back to their usual work, the emHrge team is at work reflecting on the  workshop: What were the key takeaways? What wasn't explored that should have been? Do the remaining Phase 0 steps need to be modified in any way?

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At this time, we re-engage the project sponsors and owner, providing a debrief of the workshop and discussing our proposed next steps. It's here where you may determine that obtaining additional input from from other stakeholder groups, including from a small subset of your employee population, would be valuable: helping you and the team refine the vision and consider the implications. (You can find an overview of our approach to market research/stakeholder sensing under exploring by emHrge.)

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We wrap up our session with senior leaders, documenting any feedback we'll need to share with the team when we reconvene them.

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Now that we've aligned on the purpose and parameters of the Phase 0 process, engaged stakeholders, imagined what the future could be, we're ready to create a document of the envisioned future and ensure alignment.

 

We do this by facilitating another workshop, one that typically is shorter and more focused (and can be more easily conducted virtually). The outcome of the workshop is a brief that will be delivered to the senior leadership team that includes:

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• The finalized vision statement and guiding principles

• A summary of what benefits are anticipated to be realized by implementing the vision

• High-level "specifications" of what the vision will entail, including a visual timeline, and

• Considerations to be made regarding potential barriers and pitfalls.

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As the Phase 0 process can be used as a development opportunity for team members, we then (if applicable) serve as mentors to the team, helping them prepare to present to the project sponsors and owner, and other key stakeholders, the newly envisioned future - one that is clearly articulated and ready to be further explored and expanded upon to create an executable roadmap. A future vision around which everyone is aligned.